FORMER DRUG CZAR SAYS SMARTER POLICY NEEDED

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Former drug czar and retired Army Gen. Barry R.
McCaffrey said the effort to stem illegal drug use in the United States is
working. He said there are now more drug-treatment programs, drug courts and
high-tech research about drug addiction.

Cocaine production has decreased in Latin American countries, such as Peru
and Bolivia, allowing democracy to flourish there.

And with respect to Colombia, the Western Hemisphere's largest producer of
cocaine and heroin, McCaffrey said U.S. policy is making slow, but steady
progress in helping to restore order in that country.

In an interview last week, McCaffrey was unflappable in his belief that the
nation's counter-drug policy has worked effectively -- despite a public
perception that the so-called "war on drugs" is a failure.

"One of the worst things they came up with was the metaphor, the war on
drugs," said McCaffrey, head of President Clinton's drug-control policy. "I
spent five years trying to replace it with a metaphor as a cancer affecting
American communities."

The decorated Army veteran spoke Friday at the Citizens Bank/Providence
College Veritas Forum, honoring activist Henry J. Shelton for his work
helping the poor.

After the forum, McCaffrey said he takes the long view of the drug problem.

A commander in Vietnam, who watched drug use demoralize his troops,
McCaffrey said that drug use is significantly down since its peak in the
1970s.

Nonetheless, McCaffrey said that "drug and alcohol addiction is the
single-most significant problem facing America. Period."

McCaffrey said that overall drug and alcohol use is decreasing, but chronic
substance abusers need more help.

He said the solution requires expanding access to drug-treatment programs,
which are costly and rarely covered by private insurance.

McCaffrey said insurers need to be told that covering treatment programs
will reduce health care costs because addicts tend to suffer from HIV and
other ailments as they age.

"We have to change the laws and trap the insurance industry into doing what
is actually a smart policy move," he said.

McCaffrey said "misinformation" has plagued the national debate about drug
policy.

For instance, he dismissed criticism that people have been locked in jail
for years for simple drug possession. While their record might reflect such
a charge, McCaffrey said the majority are put in jail because of a pattern
of criminal behavior.

"As a general statement, people do not get arrested, prosecuted, put behind
bars for the simple possession of illegal drugs when addicted," McCaffrey
said.

On the issue of Colombia -- a country rife with political kidnappings,
guerrilla warfare and an industry producing 600 tons of cocaine a year --
McCaffrey praised its government and police force.

The United States provides military and other assistance to Colombia as part
of its counter-drug efforts.

"We think they have advanced the policy," McCaffrey said of the Colombian
government. "We think they are moving forward. We think the thing is
working. We think it's immeasurably better."